It is known to transport valuable articles, e.g. bank notes, between the various sections of a bank and between separate banks with the aid of cassettes, which may be provided with mechanical or electronic locks, possibly both, to prevent unauthorized opening of the cassettes.
It is also known to combine cassettes with information relating to the cassette and its contents, and also to what shall be done with the contents.
For instance, it is known from Swedish Patent Specification 443,059 to provide a memory facility into which information relating to, for example, the cassette serial number, the type of bank note(s) concerned, the total number of bank notes in the cassette, the width of these bank notes, and the value thereof, can be written and read out.
Furthermore, the Swedish Patent Specification No. 449 935 teaches a system which includes a counter facility and a memory facility for counting and data storage of the number of bank notes present and optionally also the value of the bank notes, and in which the counter and memory facilities are in the form of units incorporated in an electronic data card, which also incorporates cassette identification units, units for registering the number of withdrawals from and deposits into the cassette, a unit for recording the times at which certain operations were carried out, and optionally a unit for blocking access to the cassette contents before/after a given time.
However, despite what has been said in the aforegoing, practically all transportation of valuable articles is carried out traditionally, where information concerning the transported articles is recorded on ancillary documents or paper sheets. This information will vary with different consignments, although generally speaking each transportation of valuable articles will include the following papers or documents: A draft or bill specifying the contents; a voucher which contains information regarding what shall be done with the consignment; a receipt which is used to confirm receipt of the assignment; and also some form of seal, which will guarantee that the consignment, or dispatch, has not been opened unnoticed by an unauthorized person.
As beforementioned, electronic cassettes used in the transportation of valuable articles can be programmed to contain various kinds of information on a long term basis. Such electronic cassettes can also contain the information normally found on the aforesaid documents used in the traditional manner of transportation. There then remains the question of adequate security against illegal or unauthorized manipulation of the information inserted into the cassette memory, and also against theft or misappropriation of the cassette contents. It is therefore essential to ensure that the cassette is sealed, and particularly electronically sealed, so that any unauthorized attempt to interfere with the cassette or its contents will be discovered.
The object of the invention is to provide a system for the safe and secure transportation of valuables, e.g. bank notes, with which the aforesaid drawbacks are eliminated and which will afford a high degree of security.